...In Scandal

Pastor JoelScripture: Matthew 1:1-25
Scandals are everywhere in the news these days. Witness the large amount of powerful men accused of sexual harassment and/or assault against females and/or males. If you haven’t been watching the news, here’s a snippet of the accused names drawn from movie, media, dining, TV, sports, and politics: Harvey Weinstein, Dustin Hoffman, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer, Garrison Keillor, Charlie Rose, George H.W. Bush, Chris Savino, Roy Price, Mark Halperin, Michael Oreskes, Al Franken, Marshall Faulk, Donovan McNabb, and Lockhart Steele to name a few. If you don’t recognize the names, you would recognize either their pictures from media or the names of their respective institutions. Oh, and let’s not forget president Donald Trump and former president Bill Clinton. In some ways, there is nothing new here. Powerful men, and women, have leveraged their mighty positions for sexual gain, but the sheer tsunami of allegations is overwhelming. We have entered a new era in which women and men vying for positions of influence will no longer accept unwanted sexual advances. Yay!! That’s an advance! May that advance trickle down to the poor woman with two children working 50 hours/week at McDonald's and being hit on by her boss.
Let us not forget that Jesus came to earth in the midst of sexual scandal. A virgin conceived and gave birth to a son. However, this scandal was not mired in sin, but in the sovereign will of God unto His people’s salvation. Thanks be to God.
Sunday we consider how even scandal is used in believers' lives for God’s glory, whether a virgin’s conception spawned by God’s goodness, or our scandals conceived in sin or birthed by salacious rumor. God is with His people, even in scandal. Are you His? Is He yours?
"The gift is the giver. The giver is the gift.
Do I love God for His gifts or for who He is?
When we enjoy God's gifts more than God Himself,
we are like a fiancé who takes the ring and forgets the wedding."
~John PiperSunday, December 24, 2017

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With Us...

The Bible teaches that God is with us. Even one of Jesus’ nick names is “Immanuel” meaning God with us. But how? How is He with us? Over the next 2 Sundays and then the Christmas season we will explore what it means that God is with us. This comes at a pivotal time for Pathway, as we end our 2 week fast and ask what God revealed. We sought His face over a building project that seems a near term impossibility ($1,000,000 short). Today we hear from you how He revealed Himself. Our message this week is “God with us in the mission.” Is He? If so, how?